Weekend footy…….

This topic contains 125 replies, has 27 voices, and was last updated by hatters hatters 6 years, 10 months ago.

Viewing 20 posts - 61 through 80 (of 126 total)
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  • #1476184
    banjo_chuckers
    banjo_chuckers
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    I would say that’s 3-1 to the “thought it was funny” brigade, wouldn’t you? 🙂

    #1476186
    Al The Gooner
    Al The Gooner
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    Hatters, I don’t know your best eleven but – honest question – was that really a weakened side? Mata, Mikitikiwhatsisname, Rooney and Carrick all started. I know Rashford didn’t, Ibra’s injured, so wouldn’t have started anyway, Pogba’s hardly been setting the PL alight and a Man U fan I watched the game with reckoned dropping Fellaini actually strengthened the team.

    If it was, I completely agree it’s a very risky gamble and one I would have thought, of all managers, Jose would be one of the least likely to take. Can’t help feeling there’s something else going on there, like it’s all some kind of message to the Glazers?

    In fairness though, if it does pay off and you win the EL, that’s not a bad return for his first season and more than Wenger has managed in the last 13 years.

    #1476188

    Manthistle
    Participant
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    Goals away at the teams around us in the league:

    Chelsea 0
    Spurs TBC
    City 0
    Liverpool 0
    Arsenal 0

    Can’t win matches if you can’t score goals. Can’t score goals if you park the bus.

    #1476198
    hatters
    hatters
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    @al. Yes it was a weakened side. Jones, Smalling, and Mata played their first games after long injury layoffs; Carrick and Rooney are definitely second string plus any team that doesn’t feature Rashford, Bailly, Valencia, and Pogba is not our strongest.

    As for Pogba, he is nowhere near justifying that price tag but the overwhelming consensus among United fans is that our team cannot control games or get any penetration in the final third without him – go check the United page and you will see, he is by far our best midfielder and would have tonnes more assists if it weren’t for some terrible finishing all season.

    In any case good luck to you in the chase for top 4. I think my preference is for Arsenal to finish top 4 instead of Liverpool or Manchester City.

    #1476201
    steveosnakeeye
    steveosnakeeye
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    MT thought that was only LVG and Moyes not scoring goals in a free flowing team? Maureen seems to have taken you guys a step back in at least the style of play and all season we have had parked buses yet many United fans say the Maureen plays better footy than the other 2, thoughts?

    #1476209
    hatters
    hatters
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    @steveosnakeeye. Your question is directed at MT but I would like to respond as well. In my opinion Mourinho tried to play open attacking football in the first half of the season where we made tonnes of chances and played some great football but unfortunately were very profligate which resulted in many damaging home draws in games we dominated. Since the turn of the year he has controlled the team a lot more in a tactical sense and you can see the fullbacks are often instructed not to overlap.

    In my opinion he doesn’t trust the players to play open attacking football anymore and is looking to secure the Europa League before selling off some truly dire players that were signed by LvG plus SAFs last remaining deadwood. Players like Darmian, Jones, Smalling, Carrick, Rooney, and Young are just bang average and it tells in games like yesterday.

    As for MT, obviously he can speak for himself but I am certain he will have nothing good to say about Mourinho’s football as he has already lost faith in him. For me personally, nothing could be worse than the eye bleeding “spectacle” van Gaal subjected us to and I gave him a full 18 months before I lost faith in his “philosophy”. The less said about David Moyes the better.

    #1476222
    steveosnakeeye
    steveosnakeeye
    Participant
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    good answer cheers Mr

    #1476232
    Wonderfuel Gas
    Wonderfuel Gas
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    Al, whether you want to call it a weakened side or something similar, it wasn’t a team fit to put the name of Manchester United above it, especially not in a game against a big club like Arsenal. There was a lot of players out there who won’t be around next season and it showed in a pretty sad performance from us…limping to the finishing line in a sad league campaign. Yesterday was little more than an end of season friendly with none of us having much to play for and I don’t think it reflects well on either of our clubs. United away to the Arsenal in early May? Ten years ago that would have been the highlight year with the whole world tuning in.

    A big summer for both of us.

    #1476285
    AshCFC
    AshCFC
    Participant
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    I don’t think Utd will have too many problems getting past Celta Vigo. They spent most of the first ninety passing the ball sideways and backwards.

    It’s BT in the final you need to worry about lads!! 🙂

    #1476298

    mufc
    Participant
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    United should go for Arda Turan, worth a bid as he never plays at Barca. Works his arse off, hard as nails, loads of skill, and can rip defences open. He was awesome under Simeone.

    #1476301
    Al The Gooner
    Al The Gooner
    Participant
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    Hatters – cheers but it’s a real catch 22 for us as far as top 4 goes. If we manage it, there’s more chance of Wenger staying and, if he does, we know exactly what will happen next season – we’ll scrape through the group stage and be out after the first knock-out stage. If we fail to make top 4, there’s a slightly increased chance that Wenger will eff off but it will make it harder for a new manager to attract top players without CL footie.

    Understand your dilemma over Liverpool and City completely – that’s the exact reason why every Gooner I know wants Chelski to win the title. With only the Spuds having kept a challenge up, it’s just the lesser of two very dark, horrible and smelly evils.

    Wonderfuel, I read something this morning that if we both finish outside the top 4, it will be the first time that’s happened since 1979!

    #1476319

    Manthistle
    Participant
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    steveosnakeeye

    thought that was only LVG and Moyes not scoring goals in a free flowing team?
    Exactly. Even with LvG we beat City at the Etihad 1-0, beat Arsenal 3-2, beat Liverpool 3-1, beat Everton at Goodison 3-0, we drew 1-1 at Chelsea and beat Liverpool at Anfield 1-0.

    Yet the football is supposedly better under Jose? Is it though? £149m spent but still as dull as before. I understand that Jose has a philosophy of winning at home against your rivals and getting what you can away from home which is fair enough but what if you don’t win the home fixture (which has been the case with us). We didn’t beat City or Arsenal at home yet we still parked the bus away from home. We didn’t even beat Stoke, or Bournemouth, or Burnley, or West Ham, or Swansea at home.

    I’m not trying to big up LvG because the football under him wasn’t good enough either.

    Tuanzebe was the only positive from yesterday. He kept a player like Sanchez quiet. Why has it taken until May to give this lad a chance? He’s clearly got something about him. It’s a real shame.

    #1476449
    steveosnakeeye
    steveosnakeeye
    Participant
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    thats how long its taken to get as many injuries as you have for him to try youth!

    cheers for the reply though and although i know LVG tenure was far from attractive his results and goals scored (surely meaning better to watch?) made me wonder why the fans are so much happier this year…that said they could win 2 trophies and get CL this year…

    #1476459
    hatters
    hatters
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    @steveosnakeeye. I’m not always hot for stats but here are some I’ve lifted off the United page for you:

    Big chances missed: United 1st with 48
    Shots: United 4th with 563
    Shots on target: 3rd with 205
    Hit woodwork: 4th with 18

    I’ve been saying it since December, bad finishing is the reason for our failed league campaign, especially against the lesser sides at Old Trafford. Unless Mourinho is expected to run onto the pitch and finish off the tonnes of chances we created, I don’t see how it’s his fault.

    Under van Gaal we averaged 3 shots a game. It was much, much worse and miles more boring under van Gaal plus his only successful signings are Blind, Herrera, Rojo (better this season, and Martial (somewhat successful) after 250 million spent. Anyone who tells you we are worse off with Mourinho doesn’t know their football or hates Mourinho. Simple as that.

    #1476515
    AshCFC
    AshCFC
    Participant
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    You’re worse off with Mourinho 🙂 🙂 🙂

    Seriously, you are way better off with Mourinho, and not least because he can attract the calibre of player that his immediate predecessors couldn’t. He’s still box office.

    The downside for United fans, many of whom believe it’s their birth right to enjoy swashbuckling footy 247, is that Jose will bore the ****ing pants off of you on many occasions.

    Still, that said, he’s tightened you up at the back, and made you hard to beat. If you can find(buy) some dynamism up top and through the middle, and galvanise Pogba to raise more than a stylish jog for more than two games running, then you’re all good bro.

    #1476519
    Wonderfuel Gas
    Wonderfuel Gas
    Participant
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    I’ve got a feeling we’ll have a good year next season and play some decent football to boot. Mourinho gave every player the benefit of the doubt when he took over and there’s no way he’ll be so generous this summer. Get rid of some of the shitheads cheating a living and buy in some goals along with a decent left back and someone to play alongside Herrera and Pogba and we’ll be just fine.

    We sank so low under Moyes and that lunatic van Gaal there was never going to be a quick fix, overnight solution.

    #1476526
    hatters
    hatters
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    @ashcfc. Fair assessment mate.

    There are many United fans who seem to think beautiful football can be played at the flick of a switch regardless of personnel while ignoring how pragmatic SAF was in his last few seasons and the disastrous tenures of Moyes and van Gaal. Some have even gone as far as pointing to recent performances by Juventus and Real Madrid saying “why can’t Mourinho do that?!”.

    Ahem, we don’t have a squad packed with players like Kroos, Modric, Pjanic, Ronaldo, Dybala, Higuan etc and as soon as Ibrahimovic did his knee we were screwed. Some forget that Mourinho’s Real Madrid team still holds the record for goals scored in a single season. When quality players are there he relaxes his tactics, when the players are shite he gives them strict instructions.

    Some of these same chaps say we should open up away from home against the other top teams but look at what happened in the league game at Stamford Bridge when you leave players like Smalling exposed 1 on 1 with players like Hazard. Some say “but look at how much the team costs?!” – well f**k me we’ve been screwed in the transfer market over the last few years haven’t we? You look at Mourinho’s 4 signings and all of them have raised the quality of the team.

    Wonderfuel Gas is right. Mourinho trusted too many inherited players because he didn’t want to rock the boat but next summer will not be the same.

    If we fail to win the Europa, even with all the excuses it will be a resounding failure of a season for Mourinho. If we win the Europa it will be a hugely successful transitional season for him.

    Either way he will likely keep his job and next season will be make or break.

    #1476590

    Manthistle
    Participant
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    Difference between Utd and Chelsea:

    Utd have attackers Mkhitaryan and martial defending our goal.

    Chelsea have defenders Azpilicueta chipping the ball in for Alonso to score.

    #1476619

    mufc
    Participant
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    How have Chelsea won the game? Kante got injured, thought they can only win games when he is on the pitch.

    #1476650
    knotter
    knotter
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    Jose has a very poor squad to try and motivate compared to what he’s been used to.
    When you think he had Cambiasso Schneider etc and you look at what he’s got now he must think he’s managing donkeys.
    He’s done well to bring them this far and give them a crack at the final though It will come as no surprise if the cup does not find its way to Surrey.,
    Surrey fans have to accept now that they are not much better than a middling prem team nowadays, a long steady decline, just as Knotter predicted.

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